Nagpur: Both school trustees and academics have demanded that the state education department must go for both a cut in syllabus as well as delay in SSC and HSC exams.
By first week of January, all major associations will be writing to state education minister to delay board exams till schools reopen physically everywhere.
Zafar Khan, president of School Headmasters Charitable Association (SHCA) said without physical classrooms, there is no point in proceeding for board exams. “We have always maintained that minimum three months of physical classes are needed before board exams begin,” said Khan.
The biggest reason for Khan’s demand is that very few students have access to online education. “You go to remote Gadchiroli villages, Melghat etc and there they don’t even have Internet facility. Even in our cities, there are numerous slums where parents cannot afford smartphones. In such a scenario, how can you expect these kids to appear for board exams,” said Khan.
Usually HSC exams begin in February, followed by SSC on March 1 or whichever is the next working day. Exams are wrapped up before March-end. While it’s a given that both exams will be delayed, there is no clarity about the exact dates.
Ashok Gavhankar, general secretary of Vidarbha Junior College Teachers Association (VJUCTA) said the government is working on the assumption that every student is attending classes, either online or offline. “Education department does not even realize that majority of SSC and HSC students have not even attended a single day of school. Online classes are for at the most middle class families. When you start looking at lower middle class and poor families, their children have gone without online classes,” said Gavhankar.
Ashnarayan Tiwari, executive member of SHCA said the government is also not talking about further syllabus cut. “They slashed about 25% of the syllabus, but that won’t work in the current scenario. We have a situation where majority of students have been deprived of education and that’s why we need minimum of 50% reduction in syllabus,” said Tiwari.